Rack and tray structure



Feb. 28, 1961 G. D. WILEY 2,973,100

RACK AND TRAY STRUCTURE Filed June 17, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1i INVENTORZ8\ W L. E Y 37 26 43 A? M j' ATTORNEY Feb. 28, 1961 G. D. WILEY RACKAND TRAY STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 17, 1960 I] s ll/IrmaINVENTDR.

: QQ'WILEY ATTORNEY RACK AND TRAY STRUCTURE George D. Wiley, CherryLane, R1). 3, Doylestown, Pa.

Filed June 17, 1960, Ser. No. 36,902

8 Claims. (Cl. 211-126) This invention relates to a novel constructionof rack for detachably supporting a plurality of commodity containingtrays in superimposed relationship relative to one another in said rack.

More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide arack and tray structure by means of which the rack may be readily loadedwith a stack of trays and which rack is provided with means forsupporting an uppermost tray in the top portion of the rack so that thecontents thereof is readily accessible and whereby said uppermost tray,when emptied, can be readily removed and replaced at the top of the rackby the tray located immediately therebeneath, so that, irrespective ofthe number of trays remaining in the rack, the uppermost tray willalways be supported at the top of the rack.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a rack and traystructure adapted for use in refrigerator units of retail stores andwhich units have a top access opening directly beneath which the topmosttray of the rack will be supported so that the contents of said tray isreadily accessible.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafterbecome more fully apparent from the following description of thedrawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, andwherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in vertical section, showingthe rack-and tray structure contained within a compartment of arefrigeration unit;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary top plan view, partly broken away, showing therack and tray structure;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary end elevational view, partly brokenaway and partly in vertical section, looking from left to right ofFigures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view takensubstantially along the line 44- of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view, takensubstantially along a plane as indicated by the line 5-5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 and illustrating a differentposition of certain of the parts, and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of one element of the rack and traycombination.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the rack and traycombination in its entirety and comprising the invention is designatedgenerally 10 and includes a rack, designated generally 11, and aplurality of corresponding .trays, each designated generally 12.

The rack 11 includes four corresponding corner posts 13, 14, 15 and 16each of which is of angular cross section, as seen in Figures 2 and 4,and each of which is of the same height. The rack 11 includes bottomside braces 17 and upper side braces 18. One of the bottom side braces17 extends between and is connected to the lower ends of the posts 13and 15 and the other bottom side brace is similarly connected to theposts 14 and 16. One

ate nt O of the upper side braces 18 also extends between and connectsthe posts 13 and 15 and the other upper brace 18 is similarly connectedto the posts 14 and 16, as best seen in Figure 2. The braces 18 aredisposed beneath and spaced from the upper ends of the corner posts, asseen in Figures 1, 5 and 6.

The posts 13 and 14 are connected to one another by a bottom end brace19, which extends between the lower ends of said posts. The lower endsof the posts 15 and 16 are connected to one another in the same mannerby a second bottom end brace 19. The upper ends of the posts 13 and 14are connected to one another by an upper end brace 20, and the upperends of the posts 15 and 16 are similarly connected to one another by asecond upper end brace 20, as seen in Figures 1, 2 and 3. The rack parts1320 provide a rigid rectangular rack frame the upright corner posts ofwhich are rigidly retained in upright positions.

The side flanges 21 of the four corner posts are each provided with ajournal opening 22 and an arcuate slot 23 which is located above andinwardly of the journal opening 22 and concentric thereto. The openings22 and slots 23 are disposed above the level of the upper side braces18, as seen in Figures 1, 5 and 6. A tray supporting bar 24 extendsbetween the pair of end posts 13 and 14 and a second tray supporting bar25 extends between the other pair of end posts 15 and 16. The bars 24and 25 are located within the rack frame and have aligned trunnions 26projecting from the ends thereof and which extend through and arejournaled in the aligned openings 22 of the corner posts between whichsaid supporting bars extend. The trunnions 26 are located adjacent outerlongitudinal edges 27 of the support bars 24 and 25, which edges 27 aredisposed adjacent the other end flanges 28 of the corner posts. The traysupport bars or members 24 and 25 have pins 29 projecting from the endsthereof and which are spaced from the trunnions 26 and slidably engagethe arcuate slots 23, each of which slots is of a length to allow thebars 24 and 25 to swing through an arc of approximately between ahorizontal and vertical position, as seen in full and dotted lines,respectively, in Figure 5.

As best seen in Figure 4, anchor pins 31 extend outwardly from the upperside braces 13, adjacent the ends thereof, and a contractile coil spring31 is anchored at one end thereof to each of the pins 34). The otherends of the coil springs 31 are connected to the outer ends of the pins29, located adjacent said pins 30, so that the springs 31 extenddownwardly and inwardly from the pins 29 to urge said pins and thesupport bars 24 and 25, from which the pins project, to swing downwardlyto the horizontal, operative position of said bars. The slots 23 preventthe tray support members 24 and 25 from swinging downwardly pasthorizontal positions.

One post at each end of the rack 11 contains a pair of vertically spacedbearing elements 32. As illustrated, the bearing elements 32 are shownsecured to the end flanges 28 of the corner posts 14 and 16 and saidbearings 32 project from the inner edges of said flanges and aredisposed in vertical alignment with one another and beneath and spacedfrom the upper end braces 20 and above the slots 23. Each pair ofbearings 32 slidably and turnably support a latch 33, as best seen inFigure 7, having a shaft portion 34 which slidably and rotatably engagesthe bearings 32. Each latch 33 has a handle 35 extending laterally fromthe upper end of the shaft portion 34 and a hook 36 which is laterallyoffset from and disposed below the shaft 34. One of the latches 33 isshown in an inoperative position in Figure 6 and in an operativeposition, in dotted lines, in Figure 5.

The rack 11 also includes four hold-down members 3 lower ends of theleaf springs 37 are secured in any conventional manner as by fastenings38 to the upper portions of the end flanges 28 of the four corner posts.The leaf springs 37 extend upwardly from the upper ends of said flanges28 and are outwardly bowed, asfbest illustrated in Figures 1, 5 and 6,for a purposewhich will hereinafter be described.

Each tray 12 includes a bottom 39 which is preferably fiat and which maybe provided with perforations 40, as seen in Figures 2 and 3. Each tray12 has upstanding side walls 41 and end walls 42, which walls completlysurround the bottom 39 and extend to the same height. Each tray 12 isprovided with two bail-type handles 43 which extend crosswise thereofand are located adjacent to but spaced from the tray ends. Each handle43 includes a substantially horizontal top portion 44 and depending endportions 45. The end portions 45 may be secured in any conventionalmanner to the tray sides 41 and/or the tray bottom 39.

The rack and tray structure is primarily adapted for use in acompartment 46-01" a refrigerator unit 47, as illustrated in Figure 1,of the type conventionally utilized in retail stores and having anaccess opening 48 in the top wall 49 thereof. The rack 11 is of a sizeto be inserted into the refrigerator compartment 46 through its accessopening 48, and said rack is of a height such that when its bottom orlower end is resting on the bottom 50 of the compartment 46, the upperend of the rack 11 will be slightly beneath the level of the undersideof the top wall 49 and so that the upper ends of the four hold-downmembers 37 will engage under portions of the underside of the top wall49 located immediately adjacent the access opening 48. It will beunderstood that the hold-down members 37 will be sprung inwardly as therack 11 is inserted into the compartment 46 and will spring outwardlyback to their normal positions of Figure 1 after clearing the opening48. Thus, the rack 11 cannot be lifted upwardly from its position withinthe compartment 46 without first manually dis placing the hold-downmembers 37 inwardly so that said members can move upwardly through theopening 48. The rack 11 is thus applied to the compartment 46 before thetrays 12 are applied thereto.

The trays 12, before being applied to the rack 11, are filled with itemsto be kept refrigerated. For example, the trays 12 may be filled withdishes of ice cream previously prepared or with any other items to bekept refrigerated and which do not extend to above the upper portions 44of the handles when disposed to rest on the tray bottom 39. In order toload the rack 11 with the previously filled trays, the tray supports 24and 25 are swung upwardly to vertical positions against the 'end flanges28. The latch handles are manually engaged for swinging the latches sothat the hooks 36 thereof will swing inwardly from the full lineposition of the hook 36, as seen in Figure 6, to the full line positionof said book as seen in Figure 5, during which movement the hook passesover the upper edge of the support member 24 or 25, with which it isassociated. When the latch 33 has thus been turned to its full lineposition of Figure 5 it is then displaced downwardly to its dotted lineposition so that the hook will engage the inner side of the upper freeedge of the support member 24, as illustrated in Figure 5, to latch saidmember 24 inits Vertical dotted line and inoperative position. The othersupport member 25 is latched in the same manner in an inoperativeposition. The previously filled trays 12 are then inserted into the rack11 and stack edtherein, after which the latch members 33 are displacedupwardly to release the tray supports 24 and 25 so that'said traysupports will be swung downwardly by the springs 31 to their horizontal,operative positions. The latch members 33, after the hooks 36 thereofdisengage the supports 24 and 25, are swung to their fully inoperativepositions, as seen in Figure 6. This may be accomplished either beforeor after the last tray is applied. If the last tr ay is thereafterapplied the end portions of the bottom 39 thereof will come to rest uponthe two horizontal supports 24 and 25 and if accomplished after the lasttray is applied, said topmost tray is lifted upwardly and the end wallsthereof will engage the undersides of the supports 24 and 25 to swingsaid supports upwardly toward vertical inoperative positions. When thetray has passed above the upper edges of the supports, the springs 31will return the supports to horizontal positions so that the tray can belowered to rest thereon. After the contents of the uppermost tray hasbeen emptied, the tray is removed from the rack 11 and the tray disposeddirectly therebeneath is raised past the supports 24 and 25, as justpreviously described, and thereafter lowered to rest upon said supportsin an uppermost position within the rack, as illustrated by theuppermost tray 12 in Figures 1 and 3. The hold-down members 37 preventthe rack 11 from being displaced upwardly as the trays 12 are raisedrelative to the rack.

The trays 12 are of a length and width to fit loosely within the rack 11and so that the corners thereof will engage in the angular corner postsof the rack; however, the trays are of a length so that the trays canpass downwardly between the two latch hooks 36 when said latch hooks aredisposed to support the bars 24 and 25 in vertical inoperativepositions, as illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 5.

The rack and trays may obviously be made in various sizes depending uponthe refrigeration compartment in which the rack is to be contained andthe size of the access opening thereof. The tray handles 43 are madesufliciently strong to support the weight of all of the trays disposedabove the bottommost tray, including the contents of said trays.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may be resortedto, without departing from the function or scope of the invention ashereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A rack and tray structure comprising a rack having an open upper endand including upright corner posts of angular cross section and disposedto open inwardly thereof, a plurality of commodity supporting traysstacked one upon the other within said rack, a pair of tray supportingmembers, means swingably mounting said tray supporting members withinsaid rack, said means engaging said corner posts for mounting one of thetray supporting members between two of said corner posts and the othertray supporting member between the other two corner posts, meanscopnecting the tray supporting members to corner posts thereof forpreventing swinging movement of said tray supporting members downwardlyand inwardly of the rack beyond substantially horizontal positions, saidtray supporting members being disposed near the top of the rack andengaging under the uppermost tray for supporting the uppermost traywithin the top of the rack when said support members are in horizontalpositions, and said support members being swingable upwardly to permit atray to be drawn upwardly therebetween and being released by movement ofthe tray thereabove for return to horizontal positions to support thetray thereon.

2. A rack and tray structure as in claim 1, and latch means carried byportions of the rack and engageable with said tray support members forreleasably retaining the tray support members in substantially verticalinoperative positions for passage of the trays therebetween duringloading of the rack.

3. A rack and tray structure as in claim 1, and spring means anchored tothe rack and connected to said tray support members for urging the traysupport members to swing downwardly and inwardly toward substantiallyhorizontal coplanar positions.

4. A rack and tray structure as in claim 1, said rack being adapted tobe contained in a freezer compartment beneath an access opening thereof,and hold-down members carried by the rack adapted to releasably engageparts of the freezer compartment to releasably retain the rack againstupward displacement.

5. A rack and tray structure as in claim 4, each of said trays having apair of spaced bail-like rigid handles extending upwardly therefrom andforming supports on which superimposed trays are stacked.

6. A rack and tray structure as in claim 1, each of said trays includinga bottom, upstanding surrounding walls and two upstanding bail-likehandles, said handles providing supports engaging the bottom of asuperposed tray of the stack.

7. In combination with a plurality of commodity containing trays eachincluding a tray bottom and two upstanding bail-like handles; an opentop rack in which the trays are confined in stacked relation to oneanother with the tray bottoms resting upon the handles of trays disposedtherebeneath, tray supporting members carried by said rack and engagingunder the bottom of the uppermost tray for supporting said tray withinthe upper part of the rack when said tray support members are insubstantially coplanar horizontal positions, and means mounting saidtray support members for swinging movement upwardly and away from oneanother to inoperative positions by upward displacement of one traywithin the rack from below said tray support members for successivelypositioning the stacked trays in uppermost positions to be supported bysaid tray support members.

8. A combination as defined by claim 7, means carried by the rack forlatching said tray support members in inoperative positions for stackingthe trays within the rack.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,936,077 Carpenter May 10, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 633,323 Great BritainDec. 12, 1949

